Road to Revolution Quiz

Please wait while the activity loads. If this activity does not load, try refreshing your browser. Also, this page requires javascript. Please visit using a browser with javascript enabled.

If loading fails, click here to try again

Congratulations - you have completed .
You scored %%SCORE%% out of %%TOTAL%%.
Your performance has been rated as %%RATING%%

Your answers are highlighted below.

Question 1

British taxes on the American colonists, such as the Stamp Act and the Sugar Act, were pass with what intention?

A

To hurt the American colonies economically

B

To help repay the British debts accrued during the French and Indian War

C

To fund infrastructure improvements in the American colonies

D

To raise money to fight against the American Revolution

Question 1 Explanation:

While victorious, the British had to spend a lot of money to defeat the French in the French and Indian War (also known as the Seven Years War). To pay back the debts they accumulated, the British were forced to raise taxes on all British citizens, including those in the colonies.

Question 2

What goods or services were taxed with the passage of the Stamp Act of 1765?

A

Mail sent between the colonies

B

Travel between the colonies

C

Paper products including legal documents and newspapers

D

All of the above

Question 2 Explanation:

The Stamp Act angered the colonists because, according to the colonial charters, Britain was not allowed to tax them directly; the colonies had to approve new taxes themselves. The fact that the items being taxed were part of daily life (including things like contracts, deeds, and newspapers) meant that the tax was intended to be unavoidable.

Question 3

Why were the American colonists so upset about the practice of “taxation without representation?”

A

The colonists were British subjects, but did not have any say in the British government that was taxing them.

B

The colonists were angered because Britain was not using its tax revenue to benefit all of the colonies equally.

C

The colonists wanted the right to tax Britain.

D

All of the above.

Question 3 Explanation:

“Taxation without representation” became a unifying cry for the American colonists in the early stages of rebellion against Great Britain. The colonists were upset that they were not being given the same representation in Parliament as their fellow Englishmen in Europe. Despite this lack of a political voice, the colonists were still being subjected to new British laws and taxes that, they felt, were both unfair and unfairly imposed.

Question 4

What were the goals of the Sons of Liberty?

A

To draft a Declaration of Independence

B

To organize protests and rebellious acts against the British Empire in response to unfair taxes

C

To collect information about those participating in the colonial rebellion and relay this information to the British authorities

D

To promote the growth of colonial families

Question 4 Explanation:

The Sons of Liberty protested British taxes like the Stamp Act by coordinating boycotts of British goods, intimidating tax collectors, and conducting public displays (like the burning of effigies and the publication of anti-British articles in colonial newspapers). While “Sons of Liberty” organizations sprung up across the 13 colonies, the Bostonian group was one of the most active.

Question 5

What was the main idea of the Declaratory Act?

A

American colonists were required to pledge allegiance to the crown of England.

B

American merchants had to declare their cargo in British ports so that the appropriate goods could be taxed.

C

The British Parliament had the total authority to impose laws and taxes on the American colonies.

D

The American colonies were formally warned not to declare independence from Great Britain.

Question 5 Explanation:

The American Colonies Act of 1766 is more commonly known as the Declaratory Act. The passage of this Act accompanied the repeal of the Stamp Act of 1765. The British wanted to make it clear to the colonies that, while their fight against the Stamp Act may have been successful, the “taxation without representation” argument would no longer work. The Declaratory Act stated that the British were in control of colonial law “in all cases whatsoever.”

Question 6

Which of the following incidents ended with the death of five colonists and the wounding of six others, while also inflaming tensions between British military forces and American colonists?

A

The Boston Massacre

B

The Boston Tea Party

C

The boycott on British tea

D

The Stamp Act protests

Question 6 Explanation:

After being verbally harassed, pelted with rocks and ice, and cornered, Captain Preston and his men opened fire on an angry mob of colonists, resulting in the event that became known as the Boston Massacre. Paul Revere’s engraving of the event spread throughout the colonies, helping to build support for a rebellion. It should be noted that his engraving showed a very biased and inaccurate version of the events, and it has been described as the most effective piece of war propaganda in American history.

Question 7

Who was the Boston lawyer who agreed to defend the British soldiers in the trial following the Boston Massacre?

A

John Adams

B

Samuel Adams

C

Benjamin Franklin

D

James Madison

Question 7 Explanation:

John Adams, though an advocate for colonial rights, defended Captain Preston and his men against the murder charges they faced for their actions in the Boston Massacre. He was successful in getting all but two of the soldiers acquitted of their charges.

Question 8

What was the primary goal of the colonial Committees of Correspondence?

A

To keep lines of communication open between Britain and the American colonies

B

To establish a much needed postal system for the American colonies

C

To give colonists a forum to communicate with other countries

D

To inform and mobilize colonists against unfair British laws and tactics targeting the colonies

Question 8 Explanation:

The Committees of Correspondence provided a much needed means to keep the early colonial rebellion focused, unified, and organized across colonial borders.

Question 9

What was Britain’s primary goal in passing the Tea Act of 1773?

A

To raise taxes on British tea sent to the American colonies

B

To expand the variety of tea available to consumers

C

To help support the financially troubled British East India Company

D

To ban the export of tea to the American colonies

Question 9 Explanation:

The British East India Tea Company held large amounts of tea in their London warehouses, but they were struggling to remain solvent. The Tea Act allowed them to ship this tea to the colonies without paying export taxes in Britain. However, the tea was still subject to a tax in the colonies as part of the Townshend Acts, which were very unpopular among the colonists.

The goal of the Tea Act was to help the British East India Company by lowering the cost of their tea in the colonies. Britain was also counting on this cheaper tea to undercut the price of illegal tea that was being smuggled into the colonies. A final goal was for colonists to buy this cheaper tea, and thereby legitimize Parliament's taxation of the colonies through the Townshend Acts.

Question 10

Which of the following was a British response to the Boston Tea Party?

A

The Boston Massacre

B

The Intolerable Acts

C

The Stamp Act

D

The Tea Act

Question 10 Explanation:

The British were so outraged by the Boston Tea Party that they passed a series of four laws designed to punish the colonies. The Boston Port Act and Massachusetts Bay Regulating Act were designed to punish the unruly Bostonian colonists politically and economically. The remaining two laws, the Quebec Act and Quartering Act, served to reinforce the power of Parliament and the King over the American colonies.

Question 11

The passage of the Quartering Act in 1765 allowed British forces stationed in the colonies what rights?

A

Colonists were required to provide British military personnel with housing and food.

B

The right to take 25% of all profits made by merchants operating in the colonies.

C

The right to divide colonies into smaller regions, designed for easier control of territory.

D

The authority to change the currency and coinage used in the American colonies.

Question 11 Explanation:

Colonists were required to provide British soldiers with housing and food. This was another Act that angered the American colonists, especially when there was no justification given for the continually increasing number of British troops coming to the colonies during a time of peace.

Question 12

How did the Daughters of Liberty protest the Townshend Acts?

A

They formed militias and attempted to attack British authorities directly.

B

They helped coordinate the protests of the Sons of Liberty.

C

They petitioned the British Parliament urging for a repeal of the new taxes.

D

They worked to find and create alternative options for the British products being boycotted.

Question 12 Explanation:

The efforts of the Daughters of Liberty helped make the boycotts more feasible. There were taxed products like textiles that colonists could not afford to go without. The Daughters of liberty wove their own fabrics and ran their own small shops to help replace the dependence upon taxed British goods.

Question 13

What was the primary focus of those who met in the First Continental Congress, which took place in September 1774?

A

To write a declaration of independence

B

To organize a colonial response to the passage of the Intolerable Acts

C

To elect representatives for the colonial government

D

All of the above

Question 13 Explanation:

In response to the Intolerable Acts, the First Continental Congress called for a boycott of British goods and sent a petition of protest to King George III. The 56 delegates agreed to return for a second congress if their boycotts and petition did not bring about the change they were hoping for.

Question 14

Which of the 13 American Colonies did not send delegates to the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia?

A

Georgia

B

New York

C

New Jersey

D

Virginia

Question 14 Explanation:

Georgia was worried that their safety depended upon maintaining a positive relationship with Britain. With New Spain to the south and pockets of Native Americans throughout the region, Georgia relied upon the protection of the British army to keep the colonial borders secure.

Question 15

Which of the following could be considered the main idea of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense?

A

The colonists in the Americas were too weak to stand up against the might of the British Empire.

B

The American colonists would be best suited by shifting allegiance to another European mother country like France or Spain.

C

The American colonists could and should govern themselves rather than stay under Britain’s control.

D

The American colonists should focus their efforts on getting representation in the British Parliament.

Question 15 Explanation:

Paine’s pamphlet made a case for American independence based on a combination of political, economic, military, and ethical reasons. Hundreds of thousands of copies were sold, and it helped influence American colonists to take action against British rule.

Question 16

Which American patriot gained notoriety and support for the revolutionary cause with a fiery speech commonly known for its final line, “…give me liberty, or give me death!”

A

George Washington

B

Patrick Henry

C

Thomas Jefferson

D

Samuel Adams

Question 16 Explanation:

Henry’s address to the Second Virginia Convention on March 23, 1775 was the final speech of the evening and called for the colonists to wake up to the inevitability of war with Great Britain. Revolutionary leaders (and future presidents) George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were both in attendance for the landmark speech.

Question 17

Why was the Declaration of Independence written?

A

To declare British independence from France

B

To declare American slaves’ independence from their owners

C

To declare American independence from the Patriots

D

To declare American colonial independence from Great Britain

Question 17 Explanation:

The Declaration of Independence was the formal announcement from the American Continental Congress that “all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved.” It gave justifications for the decision and also laid the groundwork for the ideals of American democracy.

Question 18

Who was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence?

A

George Washington

B

Thomas Jefferson

C

John Adams

D

Benjamin Franklin

Question 18 Explanation:

Although both John Adams and Benjamin Franklin were a part of the committee that drafted the Declaration of Independence, their contributions were minor in comparison to the amount of work carried out by Thomas Jefferson, the document’s primary author.

Question 19

What was the main purpose of the preamble of the Declaration of Independence?

A

To declare independence from British rule

B

To list the reasons the American colonies were breaking away from Britain

C

To make the case that governments should exist to protect their people’s natural rights above all others

D

To declare war upon Great Britain

Question 19 Explanation:

A preamble is an introduction. Drawing heavily upon the ideas of the English philosopher John Locke, the preamble of the Declaration of Independence lays a groundwork of ideals that the American republic would strive to achieve.

Question 20

Which of the following is the best explanation of what Benjamin Franklin meant when, in reference to the signers of the Declaration of Independence, he stated, “We must all hang together, or most assuredly we shall all hang separately.”?

A

The signers should make it a point to spend time together to better get to know one another.

B

Should they be arrested, Britain should execute them as a group to save time and effort.

C

The signers should share the Declaration of Independence with the public as a group rather than trying to explain it individually.

D

It would be in the signers’ best interest to remain loyal to each other to help ensure their success and safety in their undertaking for independence.

Question 20 Explanation:

The signers of the Declaration of Independence had basically signed their death warrants. Their open rebellion was considered an act of treason, punishable by death. Loyalty to each other, and the cause, would be essential for both success and survival.

Once you are finished, click the button below. Any items you have not completed will be marked incorrect.
Get Results

There are 20 questions to complete.

←

List

→

Return

Shaded items are complete.

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

End

Return

You have completed

questions

question

Your score is

Correct

Wrong

Partial-Credit

You have not finished your quiz. If you leave this page, your progress will be lost.